Persuading the Enemy
by This is My Pipebomb
Summary: We all know Bulma gets "abandoned" by Krillin and Gohan on Namek. So, what would've happened if Bulma took matters into her own hands? Would things blow up in her face or will she be able to sway Vegeta to her side?
1. Methods of Persuading

Prompt: "Idea".

**A/N: **FIRST - This is an AU Namek Saga story. Although it can still fit into the canon storyline (for the most part). Also, this was to be a one-shot, but it turned into something more complex...so there will be a second part to this coming some time in the future.

SECOND - I have to thank my friend "SuperKamiGuru" (as he'd prefer to be called) for some of the dialogue and the idea on how to "hide" the Dragonball.

THIRD - Yes, the title is very similar to one of my "Prompted VegetaBulma" stories because this was kinda spurred by it. So my weird sense of humor had to relate the two stories together somehow.

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own DBZ or any of the characters. They belong to Akira Toriyama.**

"A lady like me is gonna spend time with you guys in a place like this that doesn't even have a toilet?" Bulma turned her head to give Krillin a sideways glance.

Krillin stood from his rock seat and held his hands up. "There's no need to worry about all that. I'm gonna take Gohan to go see the Eldest."

Gohan looked over his shoulder, one of his hands unlatching from the gorge edging he was hanging onto . "Why?"

"What?" Bulma shouted. She couldn't believe what she was hearing! "So you're just gonna leave me in a place like this? BY MYSELF?"

"Please, just bear with it," Krillin said steadily, seemingly unaffected by Bulma's outburst. "If I can get Gohan to the Eldest, we may just have a chance at defeating Vegeta."

Bulma calmed. "Really?" She looked to Gohan then back to Krillin.

"Yeah, I mean, the Eldest gave me a power up. Just think of what he could do for Gohan!"

Gohan floated down to join the two adults. "You really think that, Krillin?"

The small man grinned. "Well of course! You are half-Saiyan. Just think of how much more power you have sealed inside of you!"

Krillin and Bulma began to laugh as Gohan watched the adults slowly losing their minds to the idea.

**~S~**

Vegeta rolled the one-star Dragonball next to the other five he had managed to steal from Frieza. He smirked at his victory, but it quickly faded as he thought about the seventh missing four-star Dragonball. "Fucking Earthlings," he growled. "Where had that goddamm brat gotten the damn radar from? How had such an inferior, back-water race of weaklings thought to make something like that?" He sat down on the one-star ball with a huff. "Guess I'll just have to be on my guard. They'll be able to tell where I am with that fucking radar."

It wasn't long after that the ground began to quake and red blasts shot through the sky. He smirked again. At least he wasn't the only one who was stuck. Blasting Frieza's ship engine had been a brilliant idea. Now that damn bastard was stuck here with no scouters. Which meant no way to track him down for at least a few days. The only beings he had to worry about were those Earthlings, but they were a weak and pathetic bunch that he didn't foresee as being too much of a threat should they decide to track him down.

**~S~**

Bulma lay on her back, stretched out across the dirt below her. Her face was scrunched up in disgust at the unlivable situation she was forced into. How Krillin and Gohan had just left her, again. Her, a delicate flower in the middle of a barren wasteland. It was bad enough when she'd found out this planet didn't have a night and the inhabitants were genderless. Now she was stuck out here with no place to set up her home-away-from-home.

She sat up, fluffing the dirt from her hair. "There should be something I could do to help. Honestly," she told herself, "I used to enjoy this kind of stuff as a teenager. Hunting Dragonballs was my forte." Reaching into the pocket of her custom mini-dress, she pulled out the Dragonball radar. "For Kami's sake, I'm the one who invented this radar to find them!" She clicked the top to turn the device on.

She looked at the screen to see six Dragonballs sitting all in one spot. "Vegeta," she mumbled. She knew he was the enemy, but could he really be _that_ bad if he was going against Frieza. At the very least, he had to be the lesser of two evils. Maybe they could be allies. She could offer her help to him while keeping the four-star Dragonball hidden from him. She sighed. "It's suicide." If he was anything like Goku, though, perhaps she could offer up all her food and maybe talk him into discussing a battle plan. She shook her head, looking up at whichever of the three suns was above her.

Her head tilted back down to look over at the small table she had set up to start working on something. She growled. "I have to _try_ to do something!" her voice came out in a whine. "Even if I do end up being murdered. I can be brought back with the Dragonballs when Goku gets them." She pushed herself off the ground, dusting her butt. Her mind was made up. She would go to Vegeta, and offer him what she could to get in his good graces.

She capsulated the table and items back up, taking special care to encapsulate the four-star ball in her strongest and most durable capsule-one that was designed to contain radioactive materials. 'There' she thought to herself with smug satisfaction. 'This will keep the Dragonball hidden even from the radar. So even if that bastard does kill me, at least it won't get him very damn far.' Taking one of the many cases from one of her many pockets, she put the capsule back in it's slot. Putting the case back, she reached into another pocket to grab the case that contained her air bike. She un-capsulated the bike and hopped on. "This has to be the worst idea I've ever had," she told herself as she sped off in the direction her radar was picking up the Dragonballs' signal.

It took her a few hours to get to the location. The radar indicating that she was just about to reach the Dragonballs. She looked down, seeing an island with a plateau just ahead of her. The plateau seemed to have a gap splitting down the middle. "According to the radar, that should be the spot. Here's to hoping these aren't my last few minutes of life." She slipped the device back into her pocket, and slowed her bike as she reached the shoreline.

Upon landing she hopped off the bike and capsulated it. Smoothing out the bottom of her outfit, she tugged a little at the ends to make sure it was covering her properly. She let out a heavy and shaky breath before moving forward and towards the front of the plateau, determined not to be afraid or intimated by this alien. 'I'm just here to try to get him on our side.' She rounded the corner to find him crouched in a fighting position and growling, but as soon as he caught sight of her face his position relaxed slightly.

"Hi, I'm Bulma Briefs." She extended her hand with her greeting. A move she had been getting used to as she began to take over Capsule Corp and meeting potential clients. The alien man snubbed her and continued to bare his teeth and growl lowly.

"Where are your bodyguards at, girl?"

She blinked as she lowered her hand. "Bodyguards?" she asked while trying to keep in a laugh. "They can't be my bodyguards if they keep leaving me all alone and not telling me what the fuck is going on around here." She saw him cock an eyebrow at her statement, but it quickly dropped back down. "Besides." She crossed her arms over the swell of her breasts. "I don't need them to protect me."

"Is that so," he stated as he started to approach her, a small smirk gracing his lips.

She mimicked his attitude. "You remember that radar that Gohan had when you found him?"

He stopped in his tracks. 'Gohan? Who the fuck was Gohan?' His brain scrambled for a second. 'The radar that the fucking brat had used to find his Dragonball.'

"What about it?" he asked.

She unfolded her arms and reached into the pocket that held the radar. "I'm the one who invented it." Her smirk grew wider as that bit of information seemed to grab his attention.

'This girl was the brains of their party?' She tossed the radar at him, and on instinct he caught it and looked over the device in mild curiosity.

"Push the button on the top to turn it on."

He looked up at her, then back down. He pushed the button and the screen lit up to show six green dots. "So where's the seventh Dragonball?"

She laughed lightly. "Hmm, wouldn't you like to know? I've hidden it so it won't show up on the radar."

He tossed the radar aside and stalked over to her. A growl ripped from his throat as he raised his hand and started to collect his ki.

Her hands dropped to her hips. "Go ahead. It won't get you very far, though," she started, trying to keep her mind off the very real threat that was growing in his hand. "If you kill me you'll never find the Dragonball. Since those two idiots I came with don't even know where I've hidden it."

Vegeta remained ready for the kill, but his mind was racing. It appeared that somehow at least one of these fucking peasants wasn't nearly as useless as the rest. She had sought him out and had access to the one thing he needed. But why was she doing it? Why was she out taking risks when she could be hiding somewhere safe and away from danger? And why would her other two teammates leave their most useful member out of the loop? He had seen good doctors and scientists go unappreciated among Frieza's slaves by the more thoughtless warriors. "You think you're a real clever bitch don't you?"

"Clever and pretty, thank you very much!" she scoffed.

The glow of his ki was less than an inch from her face. "So if you're not here to give me the Dragonball, then what the fuck do you want? Or are you just looking for an excuse to die?"

"I'm here for a truce," she told him steadily, keeping her eyes locked on his and not on the glowing death in front of her face. "We're both going against Frieza, and I think it would benefit both of us if we're at least civil with each other."

He continued to eye her, taking in her words and rolling them around his mind. He extinguished his ki and lowered his hand.

Bulma let out a mental sigh as his hand lowered, only to let out a small gasp as both his hands landed at her waist and began to run down to her thighs. "HEY! Just what the hell do you think you're doing?" She put her hands on his, hoping to stop his actions. "I said I was here for a truce, that doesn't mean I want to fuck."

He sneered at her, knocking her hands off his. "I'm searching for weapons," he answered simply before continuing his pat down.

"Turn about is fair play, ya know," her voice playful, as his hands continued to smooth over her clothing before finally dipping into a pocket on the lower half of her dress.

He pulled the case out and studied it. "I'm of a warrior race. I don't carry weapons, but you're more than welcome to check if you really need to." He gave her a sly smirk before he opened the case in his hand. "And what do we have here?"

"Those are capsules. My father invented the technology," she said proudly. She reached into the pocket on her left breast, pulling out another case and pulling out one of her favorite capsules. "They're actually really nice to have."

She activated the capsule and threw it in front of them. The capsule had barely touched the ground before it exploded and a circular house appeared. Vegeta looked down to the opened case in his hand and to the house that now stood in front of them. 'What the fuck? How the hell are Earthlings capable of such technology?'

"Pretty sweet, huh?" She turned to the warrior with a smile. "Why don't we go inside and get something to eat, and perhaps we can come up with a game plan." She went to the house, opened the door, and looked over her shoulder. "Are you coming in or not?"

He continued to look from the capsules, to the house, to her. He closed the case that was in his hands and headed toward the house. He handed the case back to her before looking around the outside of the house. His hand ran along the smooth exterior wall as he circled the building, looking for any clues that this could be a trap. When he got back to the front, the door was left open, and he could see the girl walking towards the arched opening of a second room. He entered, his hand landing on the knob of the door to close it behind it before he followed her into the next room.

"We should probably eat first," she said as soon as he'd entered the kitchen.

Vegeta continued to look around, taking in all the gadgets and furniture the house was supplied with. "I'm surprised your race is capable of such a complex and intricate technology."

She ignored his statement. "You're hungry, right?" she questioned, and his eyes shot to her and the trays she was holding.

He didn't respond. Instead he just turned and left the house. He wasn't about to trust the food she was oh so ready to serve him. He would have to be an idiot to sit down and eat with her: a girl that had made herself prepared to come greet him and not give him the one item he so desired. The little bitch that hid the Dragonball from him so he couldn't find it, especially if she was dead. A snarl crawled up his throat and his upper lip twitched.

Bulma sat down at the table with her tray of food. Some of the pressure lifted from her chest at the disappearance of her "guest". She pushed the food around the tray before stabbing the food and beginning to eat. Finished the food, she threw the tray away and went into the living room of the house to look out the front window. There was Vegeta with some huge fish creature he had apparently caught and was now eating it-raw.

She moved away from the window and went to sit at the couch with a huff. She began to wonder just what exactly was going to happen next. Would Vegeta come back in or would he continue to ignore her. Would he continue to threaten and undermine her and her race. She shook her head. It was better than sitting around and doing nothing, she supposed.

A few more minutes passed by and Vegeta re-entered the house and approached her. "Now what? Do you actually have some tactical plans or were you just bullshitting me?"

She stood from her seat. "How about a shower first," she suggested. "I could even clean your clothes. I won't be able to repair the damage on them, but at least they won't smell."

"Look here, girl," he growled, "I have no time or interest in playing house with a bored female." He was opening his mouth to continue his speech, but was interrupted.

"And I am not going to sit here with a smelly man and hold back my gag reflex while attempting to come up with a strategy!" She crossed her arms as she did her best to stare down the Saiyan.

Vegeta leaned a little closer to her, sniffing lightly. "Then you will do the same."

"Already planned on it," she said smugly.

She took him to the bathroom, telling him to put his clothes in the hamper and she would collect them and wash them after she'd gotten her shower. He only snorted and told her to leave, and she was more than happy to oblige with his request. After leaving the bathroom, she went to the bedroom and picked out a pair of boxers, pajama pants, and a shirt so he wouldn't have to walk around naked while she washed his clothes. She didn't want to try to sneak into the bathroom and leave the clothing, so she sat out in the kitchen and waited for him to finish.

Her mouth dropped open when he walked out of the bathroom-naked. Her eyes averted quickly, not wanting to be caught looking. She held out the clothing to him. "You can wear these while your clothes are being washed," she told him, her eyes focusing on his facial features instead of other bodily parts. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get clean." She pushed passed him and the look of satisfaction that was replacing his look of annoyance.

Bulma shut the door behind her and leaned against it. She was hoping that while she bathed and refreshed herself, her guest wouldn't snoop around too much or damage any of her gadgets. Moving away from the door, she began stripping her clothes off as she approached the bathtub. "I'm the one that came to him, so I suppose it'll be my own fault if he does destroy my things," she mumbled as she turned on the water.

After making sure she was thoroughly clean, she shut off the water and wrapped a towel around her naked body. She looked around the room and groaned. With the distraction that was Vegeta, she'd forgotten to get fresh clothes for herself! Now she'd have to go out there in the dirty, stinky clothes that needed cleaned or she'd have to take her chances with the towel. She picked up her clothes, bringing them to her nose before quickly pulling them away from her face. 'No way in hell am I putting those back on!'

She picked up Vegeta's clothing before opening the door and making her way to the kitchen, only to find it empty. She shrugged. There didn't seem to be any damage to the room. She glanced toward the living area, wondering where exactly he had wandered off to. Turning her attention back to the clothing in her hands, she made her way to the small laundry room and dumped the clothes into the washing machine. "Guess I should get some clothes on before I run into Vegeta."

She made her way to the bedroom, but her footsteps ceased when she entered the room and saw what was on the bed. Her hands quickly covered her mouth, and she willed herself not to scream or make any noise. Vegeta lay there, still naked, face down. She was glad that he had apparently drawn the shade on the window, so the only light filtering into the room was from the doorway she was still standing in front of.

She moved from the doorway, keeping her eyes on the man sprawled across the bed. His breathing was a bit heavy and his lips were parted, letting the breath pass between the small opening. Bulma couldn't help the small smile that turned her lips up. He was just a man, even though it was still pretty surprising that even Vegeta needed sleep and relaxation like a normal person. She let out a small sigh as she watched him for a few more seconds. He had apparently been through a lot, so maybe letting him take a little nap would help improve his mood and willingness to corporate with her. Nodding her head, she turned her back on him and went to the dresser that held her clothes. She grabbed a pair of panties, and the towel slipped from her grip. The cloth opened and dropped to the floor at her feet as she bent down to pull her panties on.

"You are far too trusting, girl," Vegeta's gruff voice called out to her. "And here I was beginning to think you were smart."

She quickly pulled up her panties. The voice at her back causing her spine to straighten and her hands to cover her still naked breasts. "It's not my fault you look harmless when sleeping." Her mouth and vocal cords moving of their own accord before she stop them. She felt the heat rush to her cheeks at the omission.

He chuckled as his eyes took in the sight of her naked back. "Foolishness. You humans are far too forgiving and naïve."

She turned her head to look over her shoulder. Her eyes drawn to his narrowed slits, the light from the doorway hitting the darkened pupils of his eyes. "Perhaps, but if Goku hadn't saved your sorry ass back on Earth you would be dead."

A sneer passed over his features before disappearing. "I suppose you're right. Than again, if Kakarot had let baldy kill me I wouldn't be here to unconsciously help you weak idiots," he shot back at her as he lifted his upper body off the bed, a hand resting under his chin as his elbow planted itself on the bed. "Now, are you going to finish dressing or is this an invitation?"

She turned away from him again. Her right hand removing itself from her breast so she could grab a bra. "I'm surprised you just wouldn't take what you want." Warm, soft fingertips suddenly brushed down her spine, stopping at the top of her underwear.

"Hmm, I suppose I could, but what's the fun in that?" his voice was barely above a whisper as he removed his fingers from her skin. "Of course, I think raping you would kind of have a negative effect on this so-called truce you want."

She shivered at the heat that rolled off his body and onto hers. She gave him a small nod. "Rape would be bad," she told him, her voice coming out a lot stronger than what her body felt.

A puff of warm breath brushed past her ear. "But….."

Her spine stiffened again. "But nothing, you asshole. Stop breathing down my fucking neck!" She slipped the straps of her bra onto her shoulders, doing her best to ignore his presence.

Vegeta crossed his arms, taking a few steps back from the alluring female. "So do you know anything about battle?"

She shrugged her shoulders after hooking her bra. "A little. I've been friends with Goku since I was sixteen, and since then I've met all kinds of ki users and seen plenty of fights." She walked over to the small closet and grabbed a nightshirt to throw over her underwear. She turned around to face Vegeta again and sighed heavily. "Could you please put on some clothes?" she groaned.

He smirked. "Does it bother you? Or is my nakedness just a distraction to you?"

"Both." She walked over to where he'd thrown the clothes she'd given him earlier. Picking up the pair of boxers, she threw them at him. "At least wear those."

The material hit his crossed arms and dropped to the floor. "No."

She clenched her teeth. "Fine!" She walked over to a different set of dressers and opened the top drawer. "Find something that suits your needs. Just please cover up your junk."

He gave her a confused look.

She rolled her eyes. "Your penis, your dangly bits, whatever you space people call it." She waved her hand at his lower half, but kept her eyes fixed on his face. She saw the smirk forming on his lips again. "Don't," she seethed. "Just put something on before coming to the kitchen," she told him before leaving the room. She walked into the kitchen, shaking her head. "Definitely the stupidest idea I've had," she mumbled.


	2. Persuasions of a Different Kind

Prompt: "Intimidated".

**A/N: **Alright, second part of this Namek Saga story...thing XD I am making this into it's own story because the plot has kind of blown over into something much more epic in this chapter. Although, still not sure just how long this will be (if there will be only one more part or more...we'll see), but it will definitely have a third part! So, hope you reader's enjoy 'cause I had a LOT of fun writing this one :3

**A/N2: **I have to thank my friend that helped me on this, too. If it weren't for his brilliant plot points to get me through this, it wouldn't have turned out the way it did!

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own DBZ or any of the characters. They belong to Akira Toriyama.**

Bulma sat at the kitchen table, drumming her fingers on the plastic surface as she waited on the alien to put some clothes on. She didn't really care _what _he wore, as long as his bottom half was covered! She closed her eyes for a brief second as she thought about what he would choose; if he would pick something that would only further the problem or cover his body completely.

Vegeta entered the kitchen, finding the girl sitting at the table, her head was resting on her hands as a small smile twisted her lips upwards. A heavy breath escaped through his nose as he went to her, his eyes waiting for her turn to him but she never did. He slid into the chair across from her, and she finally opened her eyes.

Her eyes scanned his still naked torso before dipping lower to see that at least some scrap of fabric was covering his lower half. "Find something suitable." The smile stuck on her lips as she took in his stoic features.

His hands rested and folded in front of him on top of the table. "I'm no longer nude, so get on with what you want to say."

Her hands dropped down, folding into her lap as she sat back against her chair. "I think it's your time to talk. I've told you about what I have to offer to you." Her hands raised back up onto the table, mimicking his pose. "So tell me what you have to offer."

Vegeta easily picked up on her distress. She may have been calm and collected on the outside, but little things were giving away her true emotions. The slight flickering of her dismal ki, the way she kept fidgeting with her posture, and the small amount of fear that laced her scent. He closed his eyes for the barest of seconds as he sought out her thoughts, hoping to pick up on something-just where the fuck was she hiding that damn Dragonball! He opened his eyes as he connected with her mind.

'What the fuck is he doing now?' her voice screeched inside her own head. 'Why is he just sitting there staring at me? Does he think I'm gonna crack under that stupid look of his? Although I have to admit there is something about him.'

He pushed passed the muddled thoughts at the forefront of her mind, only to greet more static. The few words he could pick up had no significant meaning without being able to pick up on the rest of the sentence. Vegeta shook his head, breaking the useless connection. 'Stupid ass woman.' His face remained neutral as he cursed her scattered brain. "Your precious Earth." He watched as she perked up a bit, her back straightening against the chair again as her hands remained on the table.

"And? What does that have to do with this?" she questioned, keeping her own guard up.

"Frieza's crew….My job was to not only clear the planets, but to find a buyer for them as well. Did you think we just raided random planets for the hell of it?" he asked with a smirk as her face gave away her inner turmoil. "We may take the supplies and technology off other planets, but it usually doesn't turn a big profit. So, the inhabitable planets we find get sold off for a much bigger profit."

Bulma swallowed, her mind processing this new information. Her planet was to sold to another species? For what? Why?

"I know who is to buy it." He made sure she was focusing on him again, his dark eyes boring into her lighter ones. "Which means _I_ can put a stop to your planet's destruction."

"If this Frieza guy wins," Bulma muttered.

His hands tightened their grip on each other. "Well then use the Dragonballs to make me more powerful than Frieza." His face remained neutral as he silently seethed.

Bulma shook her head. "I can't do that."

"And why not?" Venom seeped into his words as his patience was losing out. He had given her a good enough reason-in his mind-to make him worthy of getting his wish granted.

"Because the Dragonballs' wish cannot exceed the creator's power. If they could, you and your partner would've never made it to Earth." She watched the man's reaction-which wasn't much of a change-until he started smirking again.

"I thought you humans didn't like to kill."

Bulma turned her head to the side, nose sticking in the air, and glanced back at the man. "I didn't make that wish." Although she hadn't been against the Dragon killing off the Saiyan's had the wish actually went through.

Vegeta snorted lightly. "So, if these Dragonballs can't kill off strong opponents or make someone else stronger, how can they can grant immortality and resurrect people?"

Bulma gave a short shrug. "I don't know for sure, but they seem to be able to grant spiritual things: bringing people back to life and immortality." She waved a hand in the air in his direction at the mention of immortality. "They just can't grant physical things or a wish that requires a certain amount of ki to be done."

He lifted an eyebrow. "Then the only possible solution to defeating Frieza is to make me immortal."

"And why does it have to be you?" she all but shouted, her head straightening and body leaning forward over the table. "Why can't we wish for Gohan to be immortal?" As the words left her mouth, she knew it was stupid, but she still wasn't ready to believe the only option they had was to make Vegeta immortal. In the long run, giving Vegeta that type of power may be worse then letting Frieza live….or was it? She just didn't know any more.

"You want to give that fucking brat immortality?" His hands tightened again at the thought of his dreams slipping through his fingers when he was close to it. "And what exactly could he do against Frieza, huh? He can't fight to save his own life and has absolutely no experience on how to deal with an enemy like Frieza! He's fucking useless, as is the bald one." He calmed himself, he had to deal with this woman rationally if he wanted to get that Dragonball from her and get his damn wish. "Besides, isn't that why you came to me in the first place? Because those two are so incompetent?"

Bulma grumbled to herself about the stupid Saiyan being right.

"So who else is there? Hm? Since I recall all the other greatest warrior's from your planet are no longer living." His face set in smug satisfaction at having proven his point.

Her arms crossed against her breasts as she huffed. "Believe me, I _know_!" she said a little too defensively at being reminded of Yamcha's death. She felt her heart drop just a bit, but it quickly picked back up at the thought of another. "Goku!" A smile brightened her face.

"Kakarot?" Vegeta couldn't help the chuckle that escaped.

Bulma's demeanor changed back over to defensive at his obvious lack of approval towards her best friend. "Goku is…."

Vegeta's chuckle turned into harsh laughter. His head tilted back as his eyes closed.

"What's so funny?" she seethed, not even trying to talk to him while his laughing fit continued.

His laughter ceased as he felt rage roll off of her in waves. "What good is Kakarot to you now? All of his bones were broken, and just what kind of medical treatment do you have on that backwater planet of yours?" His eyes settled back on her, her face flushing red with anger. "I didn't realize how cruel your species could really be. At least I let Nappa die with some dignity."

Bulma felt her anger multiply quickly and out of control. "What kind of fucked up dignified death is it to be blown up by your partner? You're a real sick bastard to think that doing something like that is humane compared to actually trying to save his life and let him heal! But with your talk about Earth being so underdeveloped surely you could've easily saved that poor man's life!" She continued to blindly throw insult after insult towards the alien man, until her throat constricted and her intake of air was cut off.

Vegeta stood, tiring of the girl's attitude and lack of respect. A hand raised, his ki flowing from the appendage and effectively cutting off her words. The neutral face he had been wearing shifted a shade darker as he watched her hands move to her neck. Her eyes widened and finally caught the look on his face. "I've lost my patience, girl." His voice was even deeper and more menacing than before.

"Vege…." she started to choke out, but the constricting tightened for a few seconds.

"I grow tired of your insolence. You grow more and more distressed as we continue this debacle of a plan and truce. So let me tell you what I think about you, since you so kindly spouted off all the things that are wrong with me." He loosened the hold around her neck again, and waited to see if she would begin to protest or not. When the girl didn't open her mouth again, he continued, "You seem very distrustful of your teammates. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but in this case it is very bad." A smirk covered his dark features as her eyes stayed trained on his. "Which in turn means that you wouldn't have left that Dragonball behind for your so-called friends to find, right? So, I'm going to take an educated guess and say that you brought it with you."

She began to open her mouth again, but was immediately stopped from doing so.

Vegeta shook his head. "And just where exactly would you be able to hide something like that? Especially for me not to have noticed it yet?" he asked sarcastically. "Perhaps it's in one of the those capsule devices you oh-so-conveniently showed me how to use earlier. So tell me why I need you, again?"

Bulma choked, coughing a little as the pressure of his invisible ki gripped her throat more harshly than before. "I," she coughed out, pulling at the thin strands that were cutting off her breathing. "Know." The pressure lifted just enough so that her mind didn't feel quite as dizzy, but she still struggled against the hold. "I know…how to use…the Dragonballs." Her breath was short and choppy, but she had at least managed to catch his attention as the hold on her neck lessened even further.

"What?" he growled. There was a trick to using these damn things? How fucking opportune it was for her that she would once again hold some unforeseen key he needed. "Explain quickly, girl," he barked out, his hold neither lessening or tightening around her neck.

"Just having them all assembled in the same place won't work, asshole," she spit, her body trembling slightly. Her veins were on fire with the anger and adrenaline coursing through them. If the bastard was going to kill her, then what was the point of trying to be nice with him?

"And what exactly do I need to do?" he questioned, his expression turning from dark, to curious, to neutral. His eyes watching her ki flow, his nostrils flared to pick up her scent, determining whether or not she was just trying to make excuses to keep him from destroying her pathetic life force.

"And I'm going to tell you so you can kill me?" she spat again, her hands still resting at her neck.

He growled again, and diminished his hold on her. He folded his arms across his chest as he watched her gulp down air and feel her neck. He rolled his eyes. 'Pathetic, weak creature.' He continued to observe her, waiting for her to laugh or make some sort of move to attack him, but it never happened. "This better not be another trick, girl. If it is, I won't hesitate to kill you the next time."

His threatening voice caught her attention. Her hands lowered to cross against her chest again, almost mirroring his posture while sitting down. "Remember me saying how I was there when it was wished that you and your partner were killed before reaching Earth?"

"That means shit to me, since I wasn't there as well. If you're just trying to save your skin, you better start talking. I've already told you that my patience is low."

"Then perhaps I should just pack up and take my chances that things somehow work out okay." She saw his eyes narrow. "I mean, if I'm gonna die either way." She gave a short shrug. "Since you'll most likely kill me once you get the information out of me, or if this Frieza guy gets his hands on the wish we'll all be doomed as well."

Vegeta silently began to seethe again. He was tempted to demand that she pack her shit and get the fuck out of his sight if that's the way she was going to play. He didn't need this shit! Perhaps he could just kill her and take the Dragonball and figure the damn things out by himself. It couldn't be too hard, could it? He could feel his energy unconsciously growing higher, preparing for his attack.

"If you would just give me something to work with, I'd gladly stay and help you, though," she said, not even aware of the tension that was building in the alien man's body.

The building energy receded slightly at her calm yet desperate tone. "And what exactly do you think I have to assist you?"

"I don't know." She uncrossed her arms and put a hand under her chin. "Don't you have some kind of…like super weapon or something?"

Vegeta snorted. "If I had something like that, don't you think I would've used it, hence, not needing the Dragonballs' wish? The only thing I have to offer you is my battle knowledge and strength. I know what Frieza is like. So all I need is to be immortal and I can take the bastard down!"

Bulma shook her head, the hand that had been resting under her chin fell to the table. "I just can't, not in good conscience. I can't give you immortality. The only promises I have from you is that you can 'save' Earth-which who is to say after you destroy Frieza that you'll keep that promise? How am I to know that you won't be just as bad as Frieza? And with you being immortal?" Her mind ran through all the possible problems she could think of, some of the thoughts making her grow more nervous and wondering just what the hell she had been thinking when making the decision to come here. She gave a human growl and pounded a fist on the table. "You're more useless than I could've ever imagined!" the words flew from her lips as she attempted to see a bright side to her jumbled thoughts.

A ki blast destroyed the table she had pounded her fists against just a few seconds ago, singeing the bottom of her fists that had been resting on the now disintegrated piece of furniture. She gasped, quickly jumping from her chair and running to the sink to cool the heated flesh.

"I am NOT useless," his voice a deep rumble as he watched the female dart across the small room. "I've told you what I have to offer, and if you can't make it work then get the fuck out of my sight."

Bulma felt tears prick the back of her eyes at just how horrible this meeting was turning. After rinsing the slight burn, she reached down to get the first-aid kit under the sink. "Vegeta," she started calmly, feeling the temperature rising around her. Not sure if it was the combination of all the stress and rushing she had just done, or if it was from the surly Saiyan standing not too far behind her.

He was tired, making him all the more irritable. The girl's constant bickering and nagging had not helped keep his temper in-check, either. Of course, she had it coming. Dangling his prize right in front of his face, only to pull it back at the last possible second. He felt a low growl creep up his chest as he watched her back. "What's it going to be, girl?"

Bulma dressed her burns, putting a bit of salve on the sore spots. What was she going to do? There really wasn't much she could do, was there? Her temper sub-sided as she began to rationalize her thoughts. This was nothing like what she was used to, back when she would go hunting Dragonballs with Goku. This was a real life-or-death situation, this wasn't just about trying to get some asinine wish. After taking care of her burns, she gently massaged her forehead.

"GIRL!"

Bulma spun around, facing the Saiyan. She saw that his face was set in his usual expressionless mask, even though his hand was clenching and unclenching at his side. "You desperately need that Dragonball, don't you?" she asked quietly.

"Of course not…." The first response of denial, of not needing help, came out, but he quickly closed his mouth as she continued to stare at him. He hated to admit it, but he did need it. He needed that wish! He needed that edge against Frieza! Now he would need to gain her fucking trust. He mentally sighed at the thought of regrouping himself after his outburst. She was sure to be on-edge around him now, and she certainly wasn't going to believe his word of trust if he were to give it to her. "So," he started, holding back the anger in both vocal and body language. "What can I do to gain your trust?" he articulated.

She caught his eyes, watching the fire burning in their dark depths. She smiled lightly. "Well, first of all, I'd like an apology." One hand dropped to her hip as the other continued to massage the side of her head where her headache was worst.

Another ki blast readied itself, the air heating as the waves rolled off his body. "You can forget that."

"Hmm, fine," she sighed out. Her hand that was massaging came down to tap a finger against her lips. "Well, then." Her eyes scanned his form, finally noting that he had put on a pair of black boxer-briefs. Her eyes lingering just a little longer than intended on what she knew the underwear was concealing from her view.

Vegeta grit his teeth, ready for whatever the girl was going to request he do, especially if she was thinking this thoroughly about what she wanted. He mentally sighed, 'It couldn't be any worse than what Frieza had put him through.' He was pretty damn sure it couldn't come anywhere near that!

He was about to bark at her for taking too long when he noticed where her eyes were looking. He smirked slightly, watching as her eyes finally lowered down his legs before running back up his form. He knew she wasn't necessarily offended by his lack of clothing, and that a lot of her hostility was most likely due to his nature and the fact that he was still an enemy to her team. Yet here she was checking him out, getting an eyeful of him, just as he had done to her earlier.

Her eyes roved back up his body, landing back on his masked face. She was quite surprised that he hadn't demanded she get on with her request, but she was glad to have time to think about what humiliating act she wanted him to perform. "Dance for me," she suddenly requested. The words coming out a little more sultry than she had actually intended, but after the intake of his body who wouldn't be a little…affected by it?

The smirk crept back onto the Saiyan's face at her words and the little hint of lust that coated them. His bare feet moved across the cool tiled floor, his hips swayed back and forth with each step he took. His sinewy form moving cat-like as his eyes set upon her T-shirt covered body. "Now I'm a little confused," the words coming out smooth, the anger no longer deepening his voice. "You ran away from me when this opportunity presented itself in the bedroom."

Bulma leaned back against the counter as she took in the graceful way the muscled man moved towards her. "Again, I'm not asking for sex," she stated confidently, despite the blush on her face. "Or is dancing and sex the same to space men?"

Vegeta stopped a few paces from her, the smirk still evident on his face although it had diminished a notch. "And if it is?" he challenged the blue-haired girl.

Bulma felt her resolve die a little at his challenge. 'What of her friends? What about Yamcha?' She reached out, ignoring the nagging little thoughts at the back of her brain, pushing away from the counter top. Her fingertips touched bare skin.

Vegeta moved a step closer, letting her hand fully rest against his chest. His eyes and mind staying focused on her reactions to his challenge and any threats she might pose.

The heat his body radiated was amazing. It was like being next to a warm fire on a cold day-so very comforting. Her hand slid over his abs, feeling the muscles flex beneath his skin. After a few seconds, the appendage ran up his chest-between his pecs-to his neck. Her eyes flicked up to meet his as she felt a low rumble vibrate his vocal cords.

A loud buzzer sounded a few rooms away, yet the annoying sound was loud enough to make Bulma jump and pull her hand away from the heated flesh.

Vegeta blinked at the sound, his eyes turning in the direction from which the noise had come. "What's that?"

"The washer." Bulma stepped to the side so she could make her exit, and hopefully stave off the awkward feeling that was crawling through her body. "I need to go throw the clothes in the dryer now." It was suffice to say that she had forgotten about their clothes being in the wash.

"And how much longer will that be?" His eyes landed back on the girl that was slowly making her escape.

Bulma continued to slip from the room, taking small steady steps so as not to seem too anxious to get away from the situation she had gotten herself into. "I'll be right back, okay?" she answered, completely ignoring the question at hand.

Vegeta watched as she finally turned heel and exited the room. He huffed and followed shortly after, curious as to what she was going to be doing while out of his sight, and perhaps getting some further insight as to where the Dragonball was hidden.


	3. More than Persuading

**Okay, this chapter I've been trying to upload for THREE days! And I have to thank aria710 for passing on the message so I can finally add this chapter and get rid of the "teaser" Author's Note!**

**A/N: **I really have to thank, once again, all the reviewers that kicked my ass and got me in gear! I've had the first 2000words of this chapter sitting on my computer for like 3 months now and I was really afraid that the 4000words I added to it wouldn't flow right, but I think it turned out rather well. Well, it turned out better than I had thought, and about 2000words longer than I had expected. SO, enjoy this nice long chapter ^^ It's full of good plot points that will be explained further in the next chapter, hopefully XD

I also have to give a big shout-out to my friend "SuperKamiGuru" for his help with getting me through the plot and the dialogue for Roshi/Korin/Popo!

'Single Quotes' = Thoughts  
_Italics = Telepathy_

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own DBZ or any of the characters. They belong to Akira Toriyama.**_  
_

Bulma looked down at her trembling fingers as she walked along the short hall and into the small laundry room. What the hell had she been thinking touching Vegeta like that? He was still an enemy….sort of. She groaned as she opened the door to the dryer, then to the washer. She reached in and grabbed the navy blue battle suit that belonged to Vegeta.

She shook her head. She had Yamcha! Her loving, caring, sexy boyfriend! Bulma shook out the suit—un-wrinkling it-before throwing it into the dryer. Of course, she had broken up with the eye-wandering bandit before he had died and never got a chance to reconcile their differences. Then having to go and pick up his broken and battered corpse from the battlefield was something she hadn't been ready to experience either.

She reached into the washer again, pulling out her mini-dress. Once again, she shook the garment out before tossing it into the dryer. Would it be cheating if she had a little fling with Vegeta? She shook her head a little more vigorously than the last time, letting a growl slip past her parted lips. It didn't fucking matter! Nothing was going to happen between her and Vegeta! No matter how sexy and alluring that overgrown monkey was, or how seductive and challenging his methods were!

"How much longer will this take?"

The growl came from the doorway of the small room, making Bulma jump. She turned to look at the man that had just been occupying her thoughts. "Oh, um, I guess around 45 minutes to an hour," her voice was surprisingly gentle yet strong as she answered.

She looked back into the washer to see her undergarments and another pair of black underwear. She looked back to Vegeta, who had moved from the doorway and was looking at the few shelving units that adorned the room. She quickly scooped up the undergarments and chucked them into the dryer along with the other pieces that were already in there. She closed the washer's lid, then the dryer's door before turning the knob on the dryer to set the timer. After doing so, she spun around to see an opened case in Vegeta's hand.

Dark eyes narrowed as they fixed onto a capsule that was marked with a skull. If the capsule held such dangerous contents, why was she carrying it around with her? Was this capsule made differently from the rest? If so….

Bulma stood on her tiptoes and tipped her head to the side to look around his body at what he was looking at. Upon seeing the middle capsule in the case, she panicked. She caught her breath before it could escape in a frightened squeak. Of the five cases he could've picked up, he picked that one! What a lucky son-of-a-bitch! Of course, he didn't know that he was staring his prize right in the face. No, he didn't, did he?

She swallowed the fear and anxiety that was creeping up her throat as she gathered her wits and stamped down the thoughts of her ex-boyfriend (cheater or not) because she had to distract this horrible and somewhat attractive man. She moved forward, feet wanting to drag but she took her strides like the woman she was: Confident, strong-willed, and sexy. She pressed herself against his back, her breasts wanting to pop out of the flimsy bra she had thrown on. Her left hand slipped down his back to smooth over his ass as her chin rested on his right shoulder. Her right hand moved up to gently touch his bicep.

Vegeta almost choked on the saliva he was swallowing when she had pressed against him suddenly. Her softer body melding into his harder muscles, her breath hit his neck, ear, and face as she rested her chin on him. The slight tickling sensation of her fingers ghosting over his cloth covered bottom and bicep sent a straightening tingle up his spine. If he was a man of baser instincts, he might've fallen for her little trap. Since he wasn't, his immediate response was to pick up on the hint that he had stumbled across something he wasn't supposed to find-the Dragonball. A dark smirk spread across his lips as her breath zeroed-in on his ear.

"Would you like to continue now?"

He let out a light snort as he started to pull away from her touch. "You're really starting," the words died in his throat, and his head-which had been turning to look at her-turned toward the ceiling. His eyes roved over the rounded surface as if searching for something, making her finally pull back from him. The case in his hand was hurriedly placed back on a shelf before he turned and dashed from the room.

Bulma looked after him, a confused look overtaking her features, before she turned back to the case he had laid down. Her fingers rested on the slightly warmed object before her head was once again jerked in the direction Vegeta had run-outside. A loud shout had her feet moving towards the door in a sprint, only to be knocked down as she entered the living room. Landing back on her tailbone, she let out a small cry of pain before looking up at Vegeta. "What the hell was that about?" A hand wiped across her face to discard the tears brimming her eyes at the pain on her backside.

"One of Frieza's scouts," he bit out before reaching down to haul her up by the collar of her oversized T-shirt. "Lucky for us their scouters have already been disposed of."

Her hands rested on his forearms so she could steady herself, although earning a dangerous glare from the hostile alien. "If they don't have their scouters, then that means they can't communicate back to Frieza or their other teammates, right?" Her hands dropped from his arms and she was about to pull away fully until the grip on her shirt held her still. "So what's the problem?" His eyes showed nothing but coldness and malice towards her as she finally stood still.

"The problem," he spit, "is that there will most likely be more, and with this domed house we're a big fucking target."

"You already took out Frieza's strongest bodyguards, did you not?" she hissed back. "So don't tell me you can't take out a few lackeys that come lurking about." Her hands moved back up to try and pry the fingers from her shirt as they pulled her closer.

"You're not listening, girl, and I'm tired of playing games with you."

The tip of his nose brushed hers before he loosened his hold. Bulma landed on her butt again as her head swiveled to watch him walk back through the capsule house. "HEY!" She quickly pushed herself up and started to follow him, and with quick and heavy steps she caught up to him as he entered the laundry room again.

Vegeta grabbed the case he had been inspecting before the scout had appeared. He turned back to face her; their eyes locked for a few unknowing seconds before he moved toward her to exit the room again. He casually grabbed her wrist as he passed her by.

Her feet dragged and tripped as he started pulling her. "What," she started as she tried to pull out of his hold, "are you doing? Let me go!" Her heart was now racing as the little bit of panic settled back in as his grip tightened around her wrist.

"Stop squirming, girl, or you'll break that fragile little bone," he growled, not even looking back at her as he exited the house.

Bulma lost her footing for a second as she tripped over the rise of the entryway. She was dragged a few paces away from the house, until she finally got her feet back under her. By that time, Vegeta had stopped at the entrance of the crevice in the plateau and was clicking the top of the capsule.

He tossed the capsule a few feet away, not trusting the device or what could potentially be stored in it and watched as the smoke quickly cleared to reveal a rounded safe-like object. His grip tightened around the girl's wrist as he flung her forward.

Bulma fell on her hands and knees before turning to give a dirty look at Vegeta. "What the hell? Is it impossible for you to ask?" she snarled as she picked herself back up and dusted off her hands and knees, which were both red and sore. She tried not to wince as she saw the scraps she'd obtained on her knees, so she focused her hate on the male before her.

Before she could open her mouth again, Vegeta lifted a hand and raised two fingers to send a small ki blast at her feet. "Open it, girl," was the only warning she received before another ball of ki collected on his outstretched fingers.

She jumped back, her hands clutching the front of her sleep shirt. She carefully took a few steps back before her foot came in contact with a small rock. She sucked in a breath of air as her leg almost gave out on her, but she held up a hand as she steadied herself. "I'll open the damn safe, just, don't shoot at me again."

His aim stayed steady as he followed her movements to the rounded safe. His eyes stared intently at her back as she punched in a sequence of numbers on a keypad, then bent down slightly to turn the dial of another lock, before finally opening the door to reveal his prize.

She had barely gotten herself turned around when Vegeta snatched the Dragonball from her hands. She watched as his face lit up with something akin to happiness and victory as he inspected the four-star Dragonball. Now that all seven Dragonballs were together, she rolled her eyes. Perhaps the Dragonballs here wouldn't even work the same as Earth's. Bulma certainly hoped that was the case, or else there would be an eternally young Saiyan on their hands.

"Girl! Tell me how these things work."

The demand caught her half off-guard, but upon meeting his once-again serious gaze she stiffened. "Well," she swallowed the small lump that was building in her throat, "I know of how they work on Earth, but that's not guaranteeing that it'll work the same way here, on Namek." As his eyes narrowed, she started again, "So, if it doesn't work, you're not allowed to hurt me."

He scoffed at her, directed his attention to the Dragonball in his hands before looking back at her. "Tell me everything you know, and I might let you live if this doesn't work. Of course, that's a mighty big 'if'."

She gave him a sideways glance as she started to walk past him. "Well, first and foremost," she shot her sight to the orange-starred ball, "all seven Dragonballs must be touching each other."

His mind rang with alarm bells: too easy! "Just touching each other?" he asked skeptically.

She gave a short nod. "Yeah, at least on Earth that's how it worked." She watched as he finally made his way over to the crevice where the other six Dragonballs were stored and set the seventh one down alongside the others. "Then, you just call out the Dragon."

He straightened his back, his eyebrows raised as his eyes widened. "Dragon?" he almost shouted.

She couldn't help the tiny bit of confidence that re-entered her system and turned the corner of her lips up. "Yeah, what did you think would happen?" she asked, almost mockingly at his surprised expression. "That you could just make your wish and it would automatically take effect?"

His expression quickly darkened again as he approached her. When she backed up a few paces, he smirked. "So this Dragon, how do you call it out?" his tone a bit rougher with anger.

"You just call out the Dragon's name and ask him to come out." She gave a short shrug as her hands rose in the air in front of her. "That's it, I swear. At least that's how it worked on Earth."

He scoffed, his arms crossing over his chest. "Sounds far too easy. Not even a password on these things."

"Well," Bulma began as she watched him, "on Earth the Dragonballs are scattered across the entire planet, usually hidden from view or someplace hard to reach. _I'm_ the only one that has the Dragonball radar." A cocky grin appeared briefly before she continued, "Also 'normal' humans can't fly on their own, which would make getting the ones up high another seemingly impossible task. So, you see, on Earth the real test is just finding and retrieving the Dragonballs." She let out a small sigh. "And the Dragonballs aren't nearly as large as these. Earth's Dragonballs are small enough to fit in your hand." She looked down at her own hand, squeezing the appendage into a fist.

He snorted, turning back towards the Dragonballs. "So what's this Dragon's name?"

"Shenlong. Again, that's the Earth's Dragon's name," she reminded him that the location could have a difference. She watched as he bent and arranged the Dragonballs into position.

Vegeta took a few steps back after making sure the Dragonballs were set before shooting a glance back at the girl.

"What?" Bulma felt a shiver go down her spine as his eyes pinned her down. "Are you going to summon the Dragon?" she did her best to keep her tone neutral, but was getting a little irritated at the way he was going about doing things.

"Keep your mouth shut, girl. If I hear so much as a peep from you; I won't hesitate in blasting you." To prove his point, he gathered a small ki ball and sent the blast soaring past her head.

Bulma huddled on the ground, her hands tucking behind her head. "You bastard!" she shouted as her heart hammered in her chest. She lifted her head to give him the full effect of her infuriated gaze.

With one hand pointed back towards the blue-haired girl, he turned to face the Dragonballs once more. "Dragon Shenlong, come out and grant my wish," his tone commanded.

After a few seconds, Bulma's eyes went wide. There was no light coming from the Dragonballs! Where was the darkening sky? She watched as the back and shoulders in front of her tensed. "There's no light!" she suddenly shouted before tucking her head back down, ready for the oncoming blast. Instead all she heard was the light sounds of shuffling.

"What?" Vegeta barked as he once again turned his head to look at her. A small smirk turned one corner of his lips up as he saw her hunkering on the ground.

One eye squinted open, then the other. Her head shot up, once again catching his eyes before finally pushing herself up. "There's no light coming from the Dragonballs," her voice low and a little nervous.

"And what the fuck does that mean?" He had all seven Dragonballs; he called the Dragon's name, what else was there?

"Well," she started thoughtfully, unconcerned with the threat Vegeta still was, "on Earth the Dragonballs would begin to flash with light and the sky would go dark when the summoning worked."

"So you're saying the summoning you told me won't work?" he half-growled. The hand that had been focused on the girl balled into fist.

She gave a short nod. "I told you before these are different than Earth's. The size is the only physical difference, but that could mean they have a different Dragon, too." She took a few cautious steps forward, and upon noticing her alien companion not tensing, she continued toward the Dragonballs. She squatted in front of the three-starred one and smoothed her hand over the surface. "Hell, they could have to be in a certain sequence, and there could even be a password on these suckers."

Vegeta watched her, reading her, as she hunched over the magic ball and continued to talk—mostly to herself. "What now? You've exhausted all the excuses of needing to stay alive."

Bulma quickly and sharply turned her head, pulling a muscle in the process. A hand reached up to massage the cramping muscle as she pushed herself back up to stand. "Then just do it," she growled, tired of playing this game. "If you want me dead so much then do it! You have all the Dragonballs that won't work! And you're right, there's not a damned thing I can do to help you!" A foot stomped on the barely grass-covered ground, small rocks and dirt clods pressing into the flesh. "Damn, Goku, couldn't you get here faster?" she cried out in frustration, hoping maybe that he'd feel doubly bad when he finally arrived and her body was a pile of ashes.

Vegeta's head tilted slightly to the right at the younger Saiyan's name. "Kakarot?" he asked lowly.

Of course, Bulma didn't hear the question over her own ranting and raving. Her foot continued to grind against the ground and her curses towards Goku echoed in her head. After a few minutes of stomping and cursing, she quickly stopped as she realized she was still alive. She once again raised her head to look at Vegeta. "I, uh…."

"Kakarot's coming here?" the anger and shock now gone from his voice as he'd waited for her to settle down.

"Uh, yeah. My dad said he'd be here in six days."

That idiot was coming? It would be nice to have more help against Frieza, but if Kakarot did show up…what about his wish on the Dragonballs? His plans, his wish, would be fucked if that moron showed up before they could figure out how to use the Dragonballs! Vegeta felt his shoulders tense and his teeth ground together as he thought about the other Saiyan.

Bulma bit down on the end of her thumb nail as she watched Vegeta. The man seemed to be deep in thought about something, mostly likely the news of Goku. A tiny conceited smile flittered over her lips. Why hadn't she thought of bringing Goku up before? She knew it was probably just luck that Vegeta was now too distracted to think about killing her, but she now had another chance. The smile faltered, turning her lips in a straight line again. Chance at what and just how much longer would it be until she did something else to piss the Saiyan off?

"So, Kakarot will arrive in about six days," Vegeta began to mutter to himself. A hand rose to cup under his chin in a thoughtful gesture. "And, you," he snorted in disdain, "some expert you turned out to be on the Dragonballs. Back to square one unless you know of someone else who would be more knowledgeable on the subject." The girl said she'd been in contact with her father, meaning that she had to have some sort of communicating device on her.

Bulma released her nail and threw her head to the left with a heavy huff. "More knowledgeable than me? I'm the one that built the Dragonball radar!" She opened her eyes to look at Vegeta from the corner of her eye. "I'd say there are only like two maybe three more people that would know more."

An internal smirk lit his eyes, even though the rest of his face stayed emotionless. "Do you have a way to contact these people?"

She lowered her head again, a little suspicious of his neutral attitude. "Yeah, I've got a phone I can call them with."

"Good, do it." When the girl didn't move, he let out a slight growl. "Be quick! And you should know better than to say that you're with me."

She gave a slight nod. "Of course. What exactly would they be able to do anyway?" She started back toward the capsule house, intent on getting her radio and phoning Roshi. As she walked past Vegeta, he caught her by the bicep.

"Witnessing what you humans are capable of when you choose to use your intelligence," he started darkly, "I won't be taking your 'friends' lightly. So just keep your mouth shut about _you _coming to find me."

She pulled her arm from his grip. "Right, I get it." Bulma once again turned her nose in the air as she stalked away. Once inside the house and in the laundry room, she let out a heavy breath—one she hadn't even realized she'd been holding. "Damn Saiyan. Damn Goku. Damn Namek!" she cursed to herself as she retrieved the capsule that held the satellite phone. She squeezed the tiny device in her hand, being sure not to press the release button on top, and looked down at her skinned knees. She really needed to clean them, but it would have to wait until after the phone call. Hopefully by then the clothes would be dry enough to wear.

As soon as she stepped outside, Bulma popped the capsule open and tossed it a foot away from her. Vegeta remained where he was, in front of the Dragonballs. His arms were crossed, feet shoulder-width apart. Narrowed eyes watched her as she went to the shelving unit and grabbed what he assumed was the phone she was talking about. He huffed at the bulky and heavily wired item.

"Earth's technology," Vegeta scoffed as he watched her set the device up. "How you even managed to make it into space is beyond me," he muttered mostly to himself, but still loud enough for her to hear it.

She ignored his snide comments as she continued setting up her equipment. Of course, afterwards she strode back over the shelving unit and picked up another device. She turned the earpiece around her hands, inspecting what she'd already managed to fix on the handheld communication device. "Yes, your alien technology is much more interesting." She smirked when she looked at him. "It's a shame we were in a rush to get here after your departure."

Vegeta finally stepped forward, walking over to her and snatching the broken scouter from her hand. "Raditz's?" he questioned as he glanced over the device. "What happened to it?"

"Goku." She gave him a wide smile, her hands clasping behind her back. "I only had time to reattach the eyepiece."

"Can you fix it completely?" He handed the item back to her and re-crossed his arms.

Bulma shrugged as she placed the scouter back on the shelf. Getting back on task, she headed back over to the satellite phone. "What good would it do us?"

"Frieza can't live without his scouter, I'm sure he's already ordered new ones to brought here," Vegeta answered lowly as she turned on the phone.

"Oh." A frown marred her features as she picked up the receiver and began trying to connect with Roshi's phone. "Well, I suppose I could try to…." A hand was suddenly clamped over her mouth from behind and the receiver was snatched from her hand.

"Lord Frieza has requested that the Ginyu Force is to bring him new scouters to location: Planet Namek," the voice on the phone said. Static cut through the line before a garbled "five day's trip" was heard. Static took over once again, and then a ringing sound started coming in clearer.

Vegeta handed the receiver back over to Bulma, although he stayed close enough so that he would be able to hear the conversation. He was given a curious but dirty look as the girl took the phone and put the receiver over her ear, only to have Vegeta pull it back a ways so he would be able to listen in on the information she would be given.

Bulma narrowed her eyes as she waited for the ringing to stop and for the turtle hermit to pick up. It was bad enough she was going to have deal with the old pervert, but with Vegeta literally breathing down her neck! She sighed and reigned in her anger as the line continued to ring.

"Hello!" Roshi's voice rang through loud and clear.

Not one for formalities Bulma quickly interjected, "I've got some questions…" Her lining of questions was shot down as the voice on the other end continued.

"You have reached the reservation desk for Turtle Island Maidens Retreat." Roshi's apparently automated voice continued, "Offering you the latest and greatest in sauna and exotic massage to..."

Bulma's shoulders stiffened and her hand clenched the phone tighter. She felt, rather than heard, the growl pass through Vegeta's body. "Old pervert!" she spit out, not turning to see Vegeta's face or to explain what was going on. Instead she focused her rage on the receiver in her hand. When the beep indicated her to leave her message, Bulma let loose. "Listen up you dirty old man! You better pick the phone up right now or I swear that I'll register you as a sex offender once I get back on Earth!" She heard the machine being cut off as the phone receiver on the other end was picked up.

Vegeta's teeth had ground together at the sound of her shrill yelling. He was slowly deducing that her shrieking must've been some form of defense, since she had no strength.

"Alright, alright, keep your panties on, Bulma!" a rough old voice cut through the woman's tirade.

"Oh, don't you even bring that up you dirty old pervert!" Bulma bristled as heat rose to her cheeks. She felt an extra strong hit of warm air against neck. 'Great, just great. Shoulda just called Dad.' Moving the mouth piece closer to herself, she growlingly yelled, "I've got a question and you better answer if you know what's good for you!"

"Okay, okay I'll tell ya whatever ya want just stop the yelling will ya," Roshi pleaded.

Bulma snorted, glad that her yelling was getting its intended results even over the phone, of course, she was talking to Roshi and not the Saiyan Prince. "Then listen up," she snapped, pulling the receiver unconsciously closer to her ear, only to have it stopped by a much larger hand. Her eyes narrowed slightly as the phone was jerked back a ways, but it moved the mouth piece closer. "I wouldn't want your old deaf ears to miss this," she chided before boasting, "We have all the Dragonballs! The problem is," she continued a bit stiffly, "we can't get them to work. Do you have any ideas on how to work them? Or at least know of someone that would maybe have the answer on how to work the Namekian Dragonballs?"

On the other end of line Roshi began to think. "Hmm, well that one's a toughie, Bulma. I never had much use for the Dragonballs myself."

Bulma felt heat rise against her back even though Vegeta hadn't moved closer. "Well, if you have _any_ ideas, please tell me! I'm desperate over here," her voice coming out much more confident and commanding than she felt.

Roshi's tone became surprisingly understanding, "Oh don't you worry none Bulma we'll figure out how to make them work so you can get Yamcha back." The old man snapped his fingers as a thought suddenly occurred. "I think I got it! I don't know much about the Dragonballs but I know someone who might! Can you stay on the line for a minute there, darlin'?"

"I can, but not for long! I don't like sitting out here in the open," she answered hastily.

"I understand dear," Roshi said knowingly. "I am just gonna go into a kind of trance so it will sound like no one is on the line so just hang on."

"Okay just don't be all day old man." Bulma went to adjust the phone in her grip, only to find that Vegeta's hand was still holding onto it. She scowled again, taking a few small steps backwards until her back was touching his chest.

Vegeta removed his hand from hers, his hand cupping her elbow that now nestled against his ribs and giving it a form push, unaware of the smile Bulma now held as she shuffled forward again.

At the Turtle House, Roshi opened his mind and called out to his second greatest teacher. Hey _Korin you got a minute?_ Roshi sent telepathically.

_Oh hey there Roshi_. Korin sent back almost immediately. _The original Namekian Dragonballs not so user friendly, eh?_

Roshi started for a minute and accidentally spoke aloud, "How did he know that!"

"What!" Bulma asked excitedly. "Did your guy know something after all?"

"Hang on there, Bulma. I need to hear this." Roshi said hurriedly

Korin laughed in Roshi's head. _Oh, I could always read your head like a book remember? I dunno anything but I know someone who might help. Let me conference him in. Hey, Mr. Popo._

The assistant to the gods answered instantly. _You are not thinking through the problem my old friend._

_Wha'?_ Korin responded questioningly.

_Popo has already sensed your question and he already knows the answer. You and your student should as well._ Sensing both Roshi and Korin's confusion, Popo explained. _Consider this: why is it we can't use the Earth's Dragonballs? _

_Because Kami is dead._ Roshi and Korin thought in unison.

Roshi continued. _Which is a shame because we could ask Kami how to..._ The old man stopped dead then stood up dropping the phone receiver. "THAT'S IT!" He exclaimed aloud.

"What's it! What did you find!" Bulma complained loudly as she heard Roshi's excited statement.

Roshi rushed to pick his phone back up. "Their creator, Bulma! If the Dragonballs on Namek aren't stone then the one who created them is still alive!"

Bulma gripped the receiver, a wide smile lighting her face up in excitement. "And if he made them then he would have to know how they work! Oh thanks Roshi I owe you a hug when I get back!" Bulma hung up the phone before she could hear his lecherous response. She turned around to face Vegeta, only to find him heading toward the house. "Hey!" she shouted, running after him as her happiness was replaced with annoyance.

"I heard what you and that old pervert were saying. No more playing house with you, girl," he growled out. "I have five days until the Ginyu Force arrives and that idiot friend of yours, too. I have all the Dragonballs in my hands, so now all I have to do is find this 'creator'."

"And do you know where to look for the creator? Can you feel his ki or whatever?" Bulma continued to follow the alien man to the laundry room as she continued to fire off her questions, "And just _who_ exactly has the Dragonballs?" She gulped loudly as the door to the dryer was ripped off its hinges. "I mean, you can't fly with all seven of them, right?"

He sneered, glancing over his shoulder at the shelf. "Unless I take one of your capsules." He reached into the machine, pulling out a wad of clothes and depositing the ones he didn't need onto the floor.

Bulma let out a growl, her hand resting on his chest after he stood up. "No! Now tell me, can you feel anymore Namekian's?" she asked seriously, determined not to let him go anywhere without her.

He turned his head to the side, looking at the capsules. "Doesn't matter, I'll find the creator eventually." His own hand rose to knock her arm away from him.

"And what? Blow him up? Yeah, that would work out well for you, wouldn't it?" Her hands landed on her hips as she stared at him. "You do realize that if you kill the creator the Dragonballs cease to work, right?" Bulma gave him a smug smile, before it melted away at his response.

He scoffed, pulling down the boxer-briefs he was wearing. "Of course. That doesn't stop me from threatening him."

Bulma kept her gaze on his face, although it was a little hard as he bent down before kicking the material from his feet then having to step into his own black underwear. She should've just turned away, but she didn't want to give him that leverage. "Or," she finally started, feeling a blush creep onto cheeks, "you could take me with you." She gave him her best smile, strengthening her resolve and her stance.

"Hm, and just where would that get me by having you there? Aside from once again trying my patients and you meeting an early death?" He pulled the blue bodysuit up his legs and over his hips.

"I could negotiate for you," she started before being cut off.

"Negotiate?" he asked irritated.

"Yeah, it's when…" she was once again cut off.

"I know what the word means, girl." Vegeta slipped his arms into the sleeve of the bodysuit. He smirked as he saw her eyes narrow again. "You would negotiate for me to get my wish of immortality?"

Her glare faltered a bit as her hands slid from her hips at the truth of his statement. She wouldn't endorse the wish for him. There had to be another way to defeat Frieza. The alien couldn't be that strong, could he? She was pulled from her minimal thoughts as Vegeta started up again.

"Exactly. So what will you do now? You don't have the strength to stop me," he warned lowly, readying himself for an attack of any kind from the female in front of him.

She began to brush past him, her hands grabbing the capsule cases that still lay on the shelf before bending down to grab her clothes. "You're right, I don't have the physical power to stop you, but these are my capsules." She stood defiantly in front of him, her head held high as the cases and clothes were clutched tightly in her hands, blocking the doorway.

A dark eyebrow rose high as he took her in. There weren't very many females or even males in the galaxy that stood in her position, and the few that had…well, if they had a second chance of challenging his power, they were too cowardly after their first defeat. Yet here was this human female, who had no ki or any sort of physical prowess, standing in front of him like she did. Standing straight and strong as if she hadn't almost died by his hand a handful of times in the last few hours. He blew his next breath out of his nose as a hand rose to cup her chin.

She barely flinched at the contact. The only reason she did was because it was unexpected as he moved closer to her, but he still kept their bodies from touching. She tried to pull her head back, but found the hold on her chin was a lot stronger than she'd thought. Instead, her face scrunched up as she was put face-to-face with the short Saiyan.

"Honesty." At her confused look he smirked again. "That's the only reason you're not dead, girl."

The hold on her chin loosened, letting her pull back, but she only moved back enough so he wasn't breathing on her. Her back was bent at an odd angle as she refused to move her feet away, though.

"If you try to betray me, I'll have your head for it. Are we clear?" he practically snarled, baring his teeth. He wasn't afraid to admit to himself that the girl may come in handy. She seemed to be good with technology, with fixing things that he would've given up long ago trying to repair.

"Crystal," she breathed, a bit breathlessly as he continued to stay within her personal space. "May I get dressed and cleaned up so we can leave immediately?" Bulma finally took a few steps back so she could stand straight again.

"You just cleaned yourself!" he snapped, but a growl passed his lips as she raised a knee then the other.

She only smiled and turned on her heels. "I promise I'll be quick," was her parting words as she turned out of the room, leaving him alone.


End file.
